30. Sending you on your way

The next day, just as dawn was breaking, the sound of light footsteps could be heard outside, mixed with the howling of the cold wind, making them exceptionally clear.

Fu Yunong tiptoed to the window and looked out through the crack: the villagers were gathered around the large iron pot where they had cooked meat the night before. The pot contained murky soup with a few pieces of frozen, blackened potatoes and some unknown tree roots floating in it. They were all eating with great relish.

Not long after, there was a knock on the door, and Zhong Fasheng's honest voice came from outside, "Gentlemen, are you awake?"

Fu Yunong quickly responded and opened the door.

Zhong Fasheng walked in carrying a wooden soup basin, his face still bearing the familiar smile. "I know you're not used to the coarse grains in the village, so I specially had someone cook some meat broth and white rice porridge for you. This is all the good stuff we have here, so please don't mind it."

The rice porridge in the wooden basin was steaming, with a few pieces of meat floating on the surface. The faint aroma of meat wafted into my nose, which was indeed much more tempting than the soup outside.

"Thank you for your trouble, Brother Zhong." Fu Yunong took the basin and distributed it to the group. She secretly gave Shi Dong a look, and Shi Dong nodded without saying a word, picked up the bowl, but didn't drink it right away.

"Drink it while it's hot, it'll taste fishy when it gets cold." Zhong Fasheng stood to the side, his eyes fixed on the group, a hint of urgency flashing in his eyes, but his words remained enthusiastic.

Fu Yunong took a deep breath, steeled her resolve, picked up the bowl, and together with Lin Songsong and Xiao Linfang, closed her eyes and drank it down, leaving only Shi Dong still slowly savoring it.

"It tastes good, thank you, Brother Zhong." Fu Yunong put down her bowl, a grateful expression on her face.

Seeing this, Zhong Fasheng's smile deepened. He exchanged a few more polite words before turning to leave, closing the door behind him. But after only a few steps, he quietly circled back to the door, opened it a crack, and peeked inside. The four people inside were lying on the communal bed, seemingly unconscious.

The honest look on Zhong Fasheng's face vanished instantly, replaced by a ruthless glint. He waved his hand behind him, and several men dressed in animal skins immediately ran over, nimbly hoisted Lin Songsong onto their shoulders, and headed deeper into the village.

When the other villagers in the village saw this, they all lowered their heads in unison, and no one looked up or spoke.

Inside Xiao Lin's room, the brazier was burning brightly. He had been sitting on the edge of the bed waiting, his fingers unconsciously stroking the mattress under the sheet, his eyes filled with eager anticipation. When he saw the man carrying Lin Songsong in, his eyes lit up instantly, and he impatiently waved for them to leave, "Get out! All of you get out! Close the door!"

The man dared not say anything more, and quickly retreated, closing the door behind him.

As soon as the door closed, Xiao Lin rubbed his hands together, a lewd smile spreading across his face, and walked step by step toward Lin Songsong. He had been short since childhood, and although no one really targeted him, he always felt that people looked at him with mockery. His inferiority complex had clung to him like a leech for more than a decade, gradually twisting into a morbid obsession.

He only liked tall women; he wanted to possess them and watch them beg for mercy! Once he was tired of them, he would cruelly kill them, eat their flesh, and use their skin as a pillow! He always believed that no animal's flesh was more delicious than human flesh, and no animal's skin was softer than human skin.

Now, the entire village depends on him for survival. No one dares to oppose him. Even Zhong Fasheng, who used to be the undisputed leader in the village, has to grovel at his feet like a dog.

He originally thought of just tying them up, but seeing their delicate skin, the car, and even that damned cat that was so fat and well-fed, he dared not let his guard down. It would be too much of a loss if things went wrong.

So he endured it all night, allowing Zhong to add a paralyzing ingredient extracted from an animal to the porridge. This substance was colorless and odorless, making it difficult for even experienced survivors to detect.

"Wow, such a tall person is a rare sight."

Xiao Lin stared at Lin Songsong's figure, his eyes filled with greed and excitement, his whole body trembling slightly. He couldn't wait to see this tall woman beg for mercy.

But just as he reached out, before he could even touch Lin Songsong, he suddenly felt a chill on the back of his head, as if something was pressing against it. Before he could react, an iron nail appeared out of thin air behind his head, and the next second, with a "thud," it pierced deep into the back of his skull.

Xiao Lin's eyes widened instantly, his pupils filled with disbelief. His body fell uncontrollably to the side, unable to utter a scream, and he died completely within seconds.

Lin Songsong suddenly sat up in bed, forcefully pushed Xiao Lin's corpse away, and kept spitting "Pui pui pui" under his breath. He suppressed the urge to slap him a few times, raised his foot and kicked him hard in the waist. With a crisp "crack", he kicked the man into a folding screen and left him lying on the bed, dead as can be.

It turned out that the group had planned it out in the morning: they would drink the medicinal porridge, pretend to be unconscious, and then make their move quietly to avoid alerting the enemy.

At the same time, several men entered the brick house where Fu Yunong and the others were staying. The one leading them was Zhong Fasheng. He closed the door, his face flushed with excitement, and said to the men behind him, "I'll have a taste first; you'll have your turn to enjoy yourself later!"

One of the men hesitated for a moment, then whispered, "Brother, if my wife finds out, she'll definitely scratch my face raw..."

Another man scoffed, "Stop pretending! If you don't want to play, then get lost!"

The hesitant man immediately shut his mouth, his eyes filled with greed.

Unbeknownst to them, several green vines were silently spreading out from the shadows in the corner, their tips slowly protruding with sharp wooden thorns, quietly aimed at their throats.

"Go!" Shi Dong suddenly jumped up from behind the dormitory, and with two quick thuds, she took down the two closest to her with her gun.

Almost simultaneously, Xiao Linfang also suddenly opened her eyes, raised her hand and waved it. With a few muffled thuds, the vines pierced the throats of several men with pinpoint accuracy! These men clutched their necks and fell to the ground, their blood instantly staining the ground red.

Zhong Fasheng was terrified and turned to run away, but Shi Dong kicked him in the knee, causing him to fall to his knees with a thud.

Shi Dong stepped forward, held a dagger to his neck, her eyes cold, "I'll give you a chance to say your last words."

Zhong Fasheng trembled all over, pleading repeatedly, "It was Xiao Lin! It was all Xiao Lin who did it! I... I was forced into it!"

"Tsk!" Shi Dong swung his dagger, and a bloody gash appeared on Zhong Fasheng's neck. He instantly died.

"Let's go!" Shi Dong sheathed his dagger.

The three rushed out of the room and ran into Lin Songsong, who was coming out of Xiao Lin's room. After the four of them reunited, they didn't dare to delay and ran towards the car outside the village.

But just as he ran out of the village gate, a sharp scream came from behind him, "Xiao Lin is dead!"

Immediately afterwards, a group of villagers rushed out of the village with bows and arrows and machetes to chase after them.

A woman collapsed to the ground, slapping her thigh and wailing, "How are we going to live from now on!"

A man wailed, "Xiao Lin is dead! We're all going to starve to death!"

Some people pointed at Fu Yunong and the others, hurling the most vicious insults, "You murderers! You deserve to die a horrible death! Go to hell!"

As the villagers drew closer, Shi Dong quickly opened the car door and tried to start the engine, but no matter how many times he turned the key, the car wouldn't start.

It was so cold last night that the car froze in the snow all night, and the engine got stuck!

Helpless, Shi Dong got out of the car and said to Fu Yunong, "You keep trying, I'll hold them off!" As soon as she finished speaking, she raised her hand and waved it, and several thick lightning whips appeared out of thin air, lashing out at the people rushing in front with a "crack"!

"ah!"

Several screams rang out, and the villagers at the forefront were instantly struck down by the thunder whip, their bodies emitting black smoke, and they fell silent in an instant.

The remaining people, witnessing this scene, all stopped in their tracks in terror, too afraid to rush forward. They stood rooted to the spot, staring at Shi Dong and his companions with eyes filled with despair and hatred. "We kindly took you in, gave you food and shelter, and you killed us! You bastards! Ungrateful wretches!"

"Exactly! Without Xiao Lin, how will we hunt? How will we survive?!"

Hua Hua's fur stood on end, her pupils dilated, and she let out a low growl.

Just then, a woman suddenly rushed towards them, crying and screaming. It was Zhong Fasheng's daughter. "You killed my father! You killed Brother Xiao Lin! I'll fight you to the death!"

A hint of reluctance flashed in Xiao Linfang's eyes. She swung her hand and a wooden splinter pierced her throat with pinpoint accuracy.

The woman's body froze on the spot, then she fell straight down, the machete clattering to the ground.

Upon seeing this, the villagers fell completely silent. No one spoke, but their gazes toward the group were even more hostile than before, as if they wanted to devour them alive.

Shi Dong looked at the people in front of him, his eyes turning completely cold. Since they couldn't go on living, he might as well send them on their way.

A flash of electricity appeared in her eyes, and a thundercloud instantly gathered in the sky. With a loud "boom," several thick bolts of lightning struck down, hitting them directly!

People screamed in despair, but the lightning gave them no chance to escape. Bolts of lightning struck them, leaving only piles of scorched earth.

Fu Yunong stared in disbelief from inside the car. When the lightning subsided, she opened the car door, looked at the scene before her, and sighed regretfully, "Why bother?"

With things having come to this, the group re-entered the village and took away all the furs, meat, and grain inside.

The final inventory showed a fairly considerable haul: various animal pelts and fur coats; about 600 jin of various kinds of meat; and about 100 jin of various kinds of grain. Zhong Fasheng hadn't lied to them; the grain was indeed pitifully little.

Fu Yunong used the fur care feature in the "Value-Added Services" clothing cleaning section to clean the fur and fur coat thoroughly. She then had the fur coat altered to fit four people using clothing repair services. Wearing it, it was indeed exceptionally soft and warm.

Meat processing is also efficient; dried meat is directly stored in the space, while fresh meat is processed into jerky and dried meat by the system, giving them another snack to eat anytime.

Finally, the four men, carrying torches, lit fires in various locations throughout the village, including the wooden houses, granaries, and kitchen warehouses. With crackling sounds, the flames quickly engulfed the village, and thick smoke billowed into the sky.

Without lingering, the four jumped into the car, and with a roar of the engine, the car sped away, leaving the scene of sin and ashes behind.